♪ they get underway to bring the assad regime and the opposition to the negotiating table. ♪ and we are watching the news from al jazeera and also in the next half hour, hundreds of firefighters flown in from australia as bush fire threatening sidney predicted to get even worse. smothered in smoke, the chinese city of 12 million people roared to a stand still by pollution. >> and i'm reporting from libya

on t on the poachers who are running tourism such as this lodge. >> talks are getting underway this london to lay the ground work for peace negotiations to end the conflict in syria. foreign ministers from the friends of syria core group are meeting the syria national coalition and the president bashir assad said no data has been sent for talks at ending the civil war and he indicated he has no intention of quitting saying there is no reason he cannot run for reelection. >> translator: there is no data and there is no factors that help in holding it now if we wanted to succeed. meaning who are the parties participating in geneva? what is the relation of the forces to the syrian people? are they forces representing the syrian people or forces representing the countries that

made it? if this force participating conference with dialog wanted to suggest a suggestion later on which basis do we answer it as a country? who does it represent? >> reporter: that is barnaby phillips in london and if there was one key of the meetings, what would that be? >> well, to take as much of the syrian opposition as possible to a conference in jaw knee have n geneva and with their position that is not going to be easy and at the moment one of the biggest groups the syrian national council is saying they don't really see the prospects of them going to geneva at all making any sense unless there is a clear commitment from the government in syria that these talks are going to lead to a transitional government, that president assad will be standing

down and this transitional government will have full, executive powers over the army and security and country. that is a big ask. you saw what president assad was saying just yesterday in damascus and the western and middle eastern foreign minister whose are meeting right now in the building behind me are really going to struggle to convince all of the syrian opposition that they are taking them down a path that will be meaningful and that will bear fruit for the opposition. >> difficult tonight what kind of pressure can be put on the opposition when the opposition has so much miss trust of those people who are sitting down at the talks in london. >> yes, that is right. obviously there is some leverage because parts of the syrian opposition are helped by some of the governments who are meeting here in london, the katar and

saudi arabian but there is a lot of disappointment and frustration if you like the backers and some of the elements on the ground at the moment. ser certainly in the west there is happiness about the chemical weapons deal and the fact they finally managed to get some cooperation from the russians on syria, the fact that they have got some sort of movement at the united nations security council and all of that creating a feeling there is a possibility of momentum towards geneva to as it's being called but if you accommodate the russians you irritate and annoy parts of the opposition who have felt very left out over the last few weeks and feel really that any sense of triumph over chemical weapons decides the point, that that was only a very small part of the terrible war in syria and that even if that deal is successful from their point of view it will serve perhaps dangerously to

relegitimize the regime of president assad and they would say that is a very high price to pay. >> reporter: we thank you very much indeed and mr. phillip in london. bush fires are threatening sidney and the worst fires in a decade and one person has died and 200 homes destroyed. fire officials now warning residents to prepare for the worst as forecasted weather conditions look set to fan the flames. >> the conditions are going to be worse than otherwise expected only this morning. they are going to be worse to the point that the fire danger ratings across most of the greater sidney area, the hunt and the fire ground blue mountains and southern mountains will be widespread and extreme

fire danger ratings. >> andrew thomas joined the crews battling the blazes around the clock. he is on the night shift for the third night in a row. >> very busy. >> reporter: normally he works as a chef, almost a thousand kilometers from the town. >> we will split up. >> reporter: but he is hundreds of volunteer firefighters flown in from all over australia to protect the town near sidney. >> that is what we will do. any questions? >> reporter: the hills are a light and the task is to stop the bush fires traveling down to the town and they will be fighting fire by lighting more fire. but first a townhouse needs protecting. >> we are putting in wet dirt

and it's not going to catch a lot. >> reporter: once the ground around the house is wet it is lit. >> that will do it. >> reporter: and within seconds this. >> the idea is these planes travel up to hill. i mean the big wild bush fire coming down it, this area burnt out and the wildfire cannot reach the house and cannot reach the town. it's risky work. >> as you see this is coming off the tree and coming up, and the wind will stop bringing it back. these are big ones here. >> yeah. >> reporter: if that drops back down in here behind us that half is gone. >> reporter: there are hundreds of operations like this going on across south wales and much work being done when it's coolest and the winds lightest at night. if we didn't do this tonight it would come down the hill and straight to the town. >> reporter: you are protecting the whole time. >> yes. >> reporter: under controlled conditions two of the biggest

brush fires are brought together and that means there are to huge fires across the blue mountains and the concern is as the weather deteriorates on wednesday the northern and southern fires could meet and could create what some are calling with a mega fire with the front hundreds of kilometers long and it could threaten the town and western suburbs of sidney and this is what is being done to stop it and andrew thomas with al jazeera. >> reporter: they shot dead a palestinian man in the occupied west bank and israel said the 24-year-old was a fighter with the jahaad group and local people protesting about his death. barack obama picked up the phone and called the french president to talk about accusations that the u.s. has been spying on millions of french people. the latest allegations in the newspaper come from further leaks by the u.s. whistleblower edward snow den and talking in

paris the u.s. secretary of state said the united states is reviewing how it gathers intelligence. >> president obama said clearly in a resent speech he gave at the general assembly a few weeks ago he said we in the united states are currently reviewing the way that we gather intelligence. and i think that is appropriate. and our goal is always to try to find the right balance between protecting the security and the privacy of our citizens. >> reporter: amnesty international is saying u.s. drone strikes are illegal and could amount to war crimes and once those responsible to be prosecuted. the human rights group investigated 45 drone strikes in pakistan between january of last year and august of this year. it highlights cases where civilians were killed including the death of a 14-year-old boy and they documented so called

rescuer attacks where those who ran to help the victims of a drone strike are killed in a follow-up attack. mts spoke to one family that was targeted. this is the family of beebe, the 68-year-old mother and grandmother was killed this a u.s. drone strike in october of last year. and all they have left to remember her by is this photo from her id card. and her son said these x-rays show the injuries sustained by his children when the u.s. drone fired its missile near their home in the village. >> translator: every one was working in the field and we have crops and that is when the drone hit and i thought it was a terrorist so when it struck it was so powerful some of the children tumbled down the steps. >> reporter: it was carried out by amnesty international and the human rights organization expressed serious concerns over

the deaths of people like beebe. >> they must explain why people have been killed and people who are clearly civilians and must provide justice and compensation and investigate those responsible for the killings. >> reporter: according to government and ngo statistics the u.s. launched between 330-307 drone strikes in pakistan between 2004 and last month. the united nations said during that nine-year period more than 2000 people have been killed in drone attacks and at least 400 of those are believed to be civilians. it's difficult to get accurate figures because the cia drone program is secret and journalists are prevented from entering areas where strikes occur but that is unlikely to prevent the prime minister a vocal opponent from bringing it up when they meet on wednesday. >> pakistan cannot afford

picking up with the united states but at the same time if pakistan's request are reasonable u.s. cannot just simply ignore them. >> reporter: few expect drone strikes to end any time soon. earlier this year president barack obama called the strikes lawful and part of a legitimate campaign against terrorism. relations between pakistan and u.s. have been tense particularly since 2011 when bim laden was living not far from the pakistan capitol and with warming ties the obama administration has requested more than 1 1/2 billion in military and civilian assistance for pakistan and drone strikes will continue to be a problem between the two countries, it would appear this relationship is on the mend as the u.s. prepares its exit from afghanistan by the end of next year. al jazeera islamabad. >> reporter: he won't the fight over healthcare law but computer

problems are now putting barack obama on the defensive. that story coming up, and we will tell you about a court ruling that could lead to the release of dozens of separitists jailed for violent attacks. ♪ [[voiceover]] every day, events sweep across our country. and with them, a storm of views. how can you fully understand the impact unless you've heard angles you hadn't considered? antonio mora brings you smart conversation that challenges the status quo with unexpected opinions and a fresh outlook. including yours. [[voiceover]] every day, events

sweep across our country. and with them, a storm of views. how can you fully understand the impact unless you've heard angles you hadn't considered? antonio mora brings you smart conversation that challenges the status quo with unexpected opinions and a fresh outlook. including yours.

. ♪ headlines for you on al jazeera and with me is david foster and talks are beginning in london to try to lead the ground work for peace negotiations to end the conflict in syria and they are meeting leaders of the syrian

national coalition. in australia brush fires in south wales are threatening the capitol sidney and the worst fires there in a decade and one person died so far and more than 200 homes have been destroyed. amnesty international said u.s. drone strikes in pakistan are illegal and could amount to war crimes. once those responsible to be prosecuted. and human rights group investigated 45 strikes in northwest in the last 18 months. an auction of the biggest off shore oil field led to protests in rio and they say it will help fund healthcare and schools but many say it's not worth the cost of putting their oil in the hands of foreign investors and we report. >> the protests have been loud, colorful and determined. those on the streets mainly oil workers wanted to get to the hotel where the auction was being held. in their wait a line of riot

police and used rubber bullets and tear gas to drive protesters back and for them to count anger on any available target. they also gathered missiles to aim at police lines and made arrangements for protection as they pushed forward. >> translator: this is unbelievable and they are attacking without reason and people in general. old people and children and they were shooting tear gas. >> we understand that the government instead of helping out the people with health, education and public transport is helping out the multi nationals and big business. >> reporter: demonstrators want to halt the auction of brazil's biggest off shore oil block and it could be holding up to 12 billion barrels of oil and the rest of the block could be hiding more than 100 billion. exploiting that would make brazil one of the world's top oil exporters but protesters say by letting foreigners bid by

giving them control they are acsation that the president , an says is baseless. >> translator: results of the auction mean 85% of all income from the labor field will belong to the state. this is quite different from privatization. >> reporter: and brazil's justice minister denies the police have been heavy handed. >> translator: it's clear the right to protest exists and has to be ensured but the event security had to be also guaranteed. >> reporter: it includes two chinese firms and brazil state run petroleum company and it's the sole operator of the fields and that means all of brazil will be better off. that is not everyone is convinced. and i'm with al jazeera. >> flooding in peru killed one and forced thousands okill their homes and two are missing after being washed away. more than a thousand homes have been abandoned in the providence

here. cuba is going to ask the united nations to condemn the u.s. trade embargo of the island and it's the 22nd time they sought condemnation and the ban has been in place since 1962. before he took office president obama said he wanted to improve relations with cuba and last year 188 nations condemned it and u.s. and israel and palow supported it. european court of human rights told spain to release separatist and pay compensation and he was in prison in 1989 for a number of violent attacks and could lead to release of more separatists and we report. >> reporter: the 1980s in spain of the tax perpetrated by the separatist group etta and caused the government to have tactics against the organization.

back in 1989 this woman was jailed for 30 years for taking part in 23 violent attacks including bomb ings and assassinations and scheduled for release in 2008 but they extended her sentence after they pressured politicians. according to the top human rights court that was deemed to be unlawful. on monday judges at the court ordered the immediate release of her as they decided her rights had been violated by retroactive charges to her original sentence. >> translator: firstly the court votes 15-20 that there has been a violation of article 7 of the convention. secondly, it says unanimously in 2008 the plaintiff has been illegally detained. >> reporter: spain would pay $40,000 to compensate for emotional stress and spanish politicians defied the order.

>> translator: the government will not change the policy of defending the rights of spanish citizens. what constitutes an open wound for all the victims so therefore this decision regardless of how it's executed by the courts in spain will not change the spanish government's counter terrorism policy. >> reporter: there are around 600 etta members in prison in spain and 61 had early release cancelled and the government said it was from a court ruling but it's a controversial issue and there is significant pressure to keep convicted members behind bars and so far it seems unlikely it will change its mind on sentences any time soon, al jazeera. >> that will bring in news which is reaching us in sinai in egypt and close to the border with israel. we understand that one army officer has been killed, that is one officer killed, four have been hurt. this is with an ied which is the general terminology for a homemade bomb exploded as a

military apc armored carrier drove through the south rafa road so apparently an explosion as a convey was passing and one egyptian officer killed and a number of them hurt. this believed to be in northern sinai. we will get you more on that as soon as we get it ourselves. smog caused havoc in china forcing roads to close and it is at a near stand still and we have more from beijing. >> reporter: and people who are switching heating systems on means this has become the new normal. it's aggravated by the seasonal burning of crops used on agricultural land. in the city visibility was less than 3 meters in some areas causing 30 vehicle accidents and traffic problems.

the unhealthy fog led to schools being closed and public routes not being used and the airport needing to stop operations and visibility is not the only problem, breathing is too. the pollution levels in many areas are beyond hazardous on international measuring scales. the acute pollution is not just a health and environmental issue it's also a political one and it's a symbol of access and growing public anger over corruption among officials and the widening wealth gap. information on pollution levels and the effect on health is now easily available. the central government needs to show that it's serious about handling the problem and pushing for a shift to cleaner energy and it has introduced a reward program to allocate over $800 million as further incentive for regions who reduce pollution by the end of the year. >> we have heavy industry

sectors in china and provinces of china and by reducing this we actually save a lot of energy used and then china has to have a lot of potential in energy efficiency and that is another solution for china to save energy consumption. >> reporter: much has to change in china and change quickly. the world help organization recently reported that air pollution leads to cancer. the disease is already the leading cause of premature death here. it's a race against time now to try to turn things around. al jazeera beijing. >> reporter: and critics as the new healthcare law in the united states, this time it's coming from about the website people use to sign up for the program. it's been plagued with computer errors and frequent crashes and white house correspondent patty reports. >> not right now.

>> reporter: it's become a familiar refrain of frustration, across the country millions have tried to log on to shop for health insurance now available under the affordable care act but for most it seems the website just isn't worker. >> the excitement became more like a question mark, but we are not giving up. >> reporter: that was the message that president barack obama tried to send monday promising the website will get fixed and defending the products it's selling. >> through the marketplaces you can get health insurance for what may be the equivalent of your cell phone bill. >> reporter: by next year most of the 48 million uninsured people in the u.s. have to sign up for health insurance or face a small fine which may be a bigger problem than just getting the website running. the plans the president is promoting are relatively inexpensive every month but they also won't pay for much. in many cases people will have to spends as much as $5,000 a year for medical care before

insurance picks up any of the costs. so paying a small fine might be the better option like the opra singer. >> there is not enough money to pay for insurance. >> reporter: if people like him doesn't sign up the system doesn't work and it won't work if the government doesn't get 7 million people to enroll by march. so far only half a million have seven started this. >> remember the coverage doesn't even start until january 1. how many people do you know actually go and spend money to buy something three months before they can even use it? >> reporter: if she is wrong there will be consequences for the country and economy. >> insurance companies that are on the exchanges now might pull out of the exchanges in 2015 or 2016 because they are not able to make money at the -- given the mix of people who are signing up. a second possibility would be

that the government basically increases its subsidy. >> reporter: the president has a few months to convince americans they need what he is selling, so far even he admits it's not going so well. patty with al jazeera washington. >> reporter: you hear a lot about poachers praying on elephants and rhinos in africa but it's a little different and the country has international attention and tonya page has more. >> reporter: they are on the trail of an rhino and used to be a rare sight in libya because of poaching but since gaining independence wildlife has made a come back thanks to the conservancys and it turned poachers into conservation people. and one rhino compared to 668

slaughtered in south africa. >> translator: i will not repeat that mistake because they give me a job. i settled down now and the way forward is i will not hunt any more. >> reporter: this is operated by the community and earns the 3,000 members about $80,000 a year. they vote on how to spend the profits either on improvements or beyond the large walls for promising students and soup kitchen for elderly and pumps. out sourced is the marketing which a private market company does and the view sells itself three community members are being trained to take over that role as well. but the system is not perfect. some people feel they have not been affected enough and because there is more wildlife now there is more conflict between people and animals. >> translator: there are a lot of animals now and they are

eating all the grass so my goats have to go very fast before we can hunt and eat wildlife but now we are not allowed. >> reporter: john used to porch for food too but he is a farmer now. he has just been elected by the community to be the treasure on the board of directors. >> it was selfishness by poaching animals instead of conserving them and getting the benefits for all the people in the area and i was asking about myself. >> reporter: 44% of libya land is protected and tourism is the second biggest contributor to the community and they are ensuring theirs and the wildlife future, libya for al jazeera. >> wildlife wherever and shoppers in the u.s. state of florida got a bit of a surprise when they were outside of a

supermarket two meters longed and the alligator blocked the entrance to a walmart store and the police were called but the reptile didn't make a rapid escape but some kind of escape to the woods and they are common if the swamp lands but not normally in the shops. ♪ government and america's largest bank over mortgages that led to the financial crisis. but is squeezing $13 billion out of jpmorgan the right way to prevent the next disaster. and patients tracking their own medical data. money." ♪ this is "real money." you are the most important part of theho